Met’s PR gives lesson in openness & honesty

Following the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes, an innocent Brazilian mistaken for a suicide bomber, London’s police force has rightly found itself besieged by the press. And has provided an excellent case study illustrating the perils of a public relations strategy that is less than honest and anything but open. It appears inevitable that Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair, will be forced to resign.

Blair squandered an enormous amount of goodwill. As rescuer’s testified, the bombing of London on 7 July had horrific consequences and it created a climate in which it was almost impossible not to support the police.

In the first place, he squandered that goodwill by behaving dishonestly. It’s still not clear how the media came to report that de Menezes, wearing the kind of jacket that could conceal a bomb, vaulted over a turnstile and ran towards a vulnerable tube train with police in hot pursuit. It may be that this was the account of a would-be eye-witness, based purely on hearsay. In any case it simply wasn’t true. More to the point Blair knew it wasn’t true, but made statements – ‘his clothing and behaviour added to their suspicions’ – that implied it was.

Secondly, Blair has behaved as a man with something to hide. He denies it, but the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) say he resisted their investigation, even though the law makes it their duty to investigate all police killings. Nobody seems to be taking Blair’s word over that of the IPCC.

Mishandling on this scale, can only render the police’s main spokesperson and figurehead untrustworthy and with his reputation falls that of the entire force. Consequently, the right and proper calls for his resignation – including the inevitable online campaign – can only succeed.

Yet it need not have happened this way. Experience shows that the public are generally sympathetic to open and honest organisations that admit their mistakes. Had Blair held up his hands and admitted that his force has made a terrible error; had he swiftly corrected erroneous news reports; had he made a show of bending over backwards to co-operate with the IPCC; and had he made his commitment to learning clear; then it would be difficult to criticise his conduct. There is no shame in saying sorry and had he said sorry and shown genuine remorse and a commitment to improve, the Metropolitan Police might still be enjoying the public’s trust and goodwill.
Contact Stephen Newton

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